Phi Alpha Rating, Reviews and Requirements. Is it worth it?
What is the history of Phi Alpha?
The concept of a national social work honor society came from a group of undergraduate social work students at Michigan State University in 1960. Investigation revealed that local chapters existed at three schools. Those three schools along with a few other schools formed a National Honor Society Committee in November of 1960. For more than a year, this committee worked on the constitution and other administrative matters. The name Phi Alpha was adopted from the local chapter existing at Florida State University.
The constitution and formal organization were completed in 1962, and six chapters qualified to become “charter chapters.” The charter chapters were Florida State University, Michigan State University, Ohio North University, Central State College, University of Dayton, and the University of Tennessee. Over 450 chapters are now in existence, and the addition of new chapters is continuing.
What are the requirements to be in Phi Alpha?
Collegiate Members: Collegiate members shall be students enrolled in undergraduate, graduate or doctoral programs at the time of initiation and have been recommended for membership by their local chapter who paid international fees.
Undergraduate Students: Undergraduate students shall be enrolled in the institution represented by the chapter, have declared a major in social work, have completed 9 semester hours of required social work courses and at least 37.5% of the total hours/credits required for the degree, whichever is later achieved, and rank in the top 35% of their class.
Graduate Students: Graduate students shall be enrolled in a graduate program in social work, have completed 9 semester hours of required social work graduate courses and at least 37.5% of the total hours/credits required for the graduate degree, whichever is later achieved, and rank in the top 35% of their class.
Doctoral Students: Doctoral students shall require a masters in social work or related discipline, be enrolled in a doctoral program in social work, have completed 9 semester hours of required social work doctoral courses and at least 37.5% of the total hours/credits required for the doctoral degree, whichever is later achieved, and rank in the top 35% of their class.
Invitational Only: Collegiate Members are admitted upon meeting criteria and by invitation only from the local collegiate chapter at the college or university where the Collegiate Member attends school at time of membership.
What are the key benefits of being a member of Phi Alpha?
The purpose of Phi Alpha Honor Society is to provide a closer bond among students of social work and promote humanitarian goals and ideas. Phi Alpha fosters high standards of education for social workers and invites into membership those who have attained excellence in scholarship and achievement in social work. Phi Alpha offers membership to social work students, faculty and practitioners. Each chapter is free to develop a program to meet local needs. The National Council of Phi Alpha, the organization’s policy making body, meets once a year at the Council of Social Work Education’s (CSWE’s) annual program meeting conference. Each chapter has one voting representative on The National Council.
Based on the information, here is our review:
Our first observation was: this society was formed in 1962, making it a 60 year old institution as of 2022.
Our second observation was: that undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students are all eligible for membership, making it a valuable place to network within the social work academic community.
Our third observation was: the eligibility requirements seem to be the same across the board in varying levels of degree difficulty, meaning all members require at least 37.5% of the total hours/credits required for their degree and rank in the top 35% of their class.
